Bill Steele talks about court case

OSHAWA -- Local activist and council candidate Bill Steele spoke to reporters outside the Durham Regional Courthouse. Mr. Steele was initially charged with trespassing and assault after he was forcibly removed from the Oshawa council chamber at a September meeting. After charges against him were dropped, an Oshawa councillor brought assault charges against the two security guards who removed Mr. Steele.

Bruce Wood

OSHAWA -- The assault case against two Oshawa security guards who forcibly removed a local activist from a September council meeting is no longer in the hands of a local councillor after the Crown stepped in.

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Councillor Bruce Wood initiated the assault charges against guards Adrian Francisco and Brian Wilson in November as a private prosecution. At issue was the removal of Bill Steele, a local activist who is now a council candidate, who was physically removed from a Sept. 3 council meeting by the two guards and Durham police. Initially Mr. Steele was charged with assault and failing to leave the premises, but in January the Crown dropped charges against him and another activist removed during the same meeting.

At a Feb. 10 court date, assistant Crown attorney Mitchell Flagg announced that the Crown would be interceding and taking over the prosecution of the two security guards. The two guards did not appear in court; a representative from the law firm Heller Rubel appeared on their behalf.

Coun. Wood handed his material over to Mr. Flagg and Mr. Flagg told the justice of the peace the information has to be vetted.

“It’s the routine process of screening the disclosure material,” said Mr. Flagg after the issue was dealt with in court.

Coun. Wood’s material included video footage of the Sept. 3, 2013 council meeting as well as statements from witnesses who were in the council chamber at the time.

According to information from the Ministry of the Attorney General, once the Crown intervenes and takes on a private prosecution, the Crown will review whether there is a reasonable prospect of conviction and whether prosecution is in the public interest. If so, the Crown will proceed with prosecution. If not, the Crown is duty-bound to withdraw charges.

Mr. Flagg also said the Crown would be proceeding summarily, the less serious assault charge under the Criminal Code. A summary assault conviction carries a maximum of 18 months in jail and fine of up to $2,000.

“It appears it’s out of my hands now,” said Coun. Wood shortly after he stepped out of the courtroom.

He said he believes Mr. Steele deserves an apology for what happened on Sept. 3 and the Province should look into what’s been happening at City Hall.

“We sat back for the longest time, we saw nothing happening, we saw the issue dying off in City Hall,” he said. “It was an issue of integrity for the community. I think the community needs to see that there are many that will stand up for their views and I believe a lot of people are saddened about what happened. There’s a stain on the name of Oshawa.”

For his part, Mr. Steele said he was confident that the Crown would do a good job in prosecuting the case.

“We’ll let the justice system take it’s due course,” he said. “I feel I was assaulted and they’ll be held accountable in the courts for that.”

Reporter Reka Szekely covers the City of Oshawa for Metroland Media Group’s Durham Region Division. Reka's social media column appears every other week. Contact her on Facebook, Twitter (@rszekely)